I found it quite sad that it took me four months (October to January to write the first two years, but the third has been taking seven months. I'm shocked that I managed to stick to this schedule. It's amazing, normally I would've given up). Thanks for being patient with me, and keep on reading and reviewing!

This is a continuation of the last chapter.

Demi and Sirius were standing in the middle of the Room of Requirement. Demi had taken it upon herself to wake up the four boys in the middle of the night to go to the room of requirement, for the fifth day in a row. Since they had allowed her to join them, she'd been hell-bent on finding out what her Animagus would be. They'd spent the first few nights trying to help her conjure the spell, and so far, she'd only been able to conjure up copious amounts of silver vapour, which would morph into a shield.

"The memory has to be happy, you've got to allow it to fill you up" said Remus, who was lounging on the sofa, watching Demi's progress, and trying not to fall asleep like Peter already had.

"Well, that's the hard bit. I don't have anything that happy to use," Demi frowned. She was wearing a tank top and a pair of shorts with her hair open. She tapped her wand against her wrist, thinking.

Sirius was standing behind her, hands on her shoulders. "Are you telling me not one of our pranks made you happy?"

Demi opened her mouth, but closed it quickly. She looked at the ground as though it were a mathematical problem that she could solve. Suddenly, she looked up, pointed her wand straight, eyed the opposite wall and yelled, "expecto patronum."

Sirius, James (who was laying on the floor), and Remus jumped as a huge burst of silver vapor flew out of Demi's wand. Slowly it began to swirl, and formed the shape of an animal. A huge coyote ran across the room, its fur glinting in the light, its tail wagging, fangs out, ears and eyes pointed at Demi. It slowly walked back to her, and lowered its head. Demi, mesmerized by its beauty, ran her hand through the smoke, and her patronus smiled before disappearing.

She squealed and turned around, hugging the first person she saw; Sirius. She threw her hands around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. "I did it, I did it!" Her curly hair tumbled around her shoulders, and Sirius watched, bemused, as she did a little dance. "Oh, thank you!"

"What was it?" asked James, walking over to Demi's side.

"A-a coyote, I think," said Demi, laughing.

"That makes sense" said Remus, picking up a book that lay abandoned on the floor, entitled What's your Animagi? He flipped through and located the page he was looking for. "The coyote is resonates with the characteristics of youth. It signifies skill, instinct, ingenuity, enthusiasm, loyalty, intelligence, inventiveness, playfulness, and resourcefulness. They are willing to risk their own life in exchange to save others. However, many downsides occur with a coyote-mind person. Their loyalty is unwavering, meaning they would sacrifice the world to save a friend. They can also be extremely harsh and cold towards new people. They can be exceedingly reckless and dominant in relationships, leading to loneliness, and in some cases depression. When left uncared for or betrayed, their moods can change dramatically, and are hard to reverse. They are also exceptionally secretive, which makes it hard for them to maintain relationships. Often enough, wizards and witches with a coyote patronus are likely to depend on alcohol and books in lieu of friends."

The four boys (Peter had woken up after Demi laughed), looked at her. She laughed, "I don't plan on becoming an alcoholic any time soon." The four boys continued to look at her, almost in pity. "What? Do you all think I'm just going to fly off the handle? I'm not about to shut any of you out, I'm not reckless, and I am not depressed!" She walked up to them, "are you actually going to believe that book over me?"

Peter gave her a quick hug, "I'm never going to betray you, honest" he walked out of the room and shut the door. Demi watched him leave, looking confused, and turned back to the others.

Remus gave her a hug, tight hug "I won't ever make you upset," he said, and with that he left.

James gave her an even bigger hug and a kiss on the cheek, "I will never give you alcohol," he vowed.

Demi laughed as he followed Remus' trail out of the room, and the door swung shut. Demi looked back at where they were all standing and noticed it was just her and Sirius. Alone. She looked at him, and raised an eyebrow, "Don't you have a promise to make?" she said, smiling slightly.

Sirius walked towards her very slowly and wrapped his arms around her waist. She hadn't noticed, but he was half a foot taller. She slowly wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face into his chest. She hadn't realized but for some unknown reason, she felt safe. Protected. Like she could face anything. She felt Sirius loosen his grip around her waist and move back, just enough to see her face. "You've been through a lot."

She looked back up at him, her eyebrows raised, "so?"

He looked at her and sighed. She could see the sadness in his eyes, as though he was crying a river internally, "I promise to never leave you. I will never let you down. I will never make you upset." He bent down and kissed her on the forehead, before letting go of her and leaving the room.

Demi stood there, watching the door, for hours.

To help clarify, it is now the beginning of April.

A month went by, and Demi was more subdued than ever. Since finding out what her patronus meant, she spent more and more time looking and examining the attributes and trying to figure out why she'd end up with, as Remus put it, a volatile animagus. When Remus had read out the reasoning behind her shape, she felt as though he'd been reading her. She remembered feeling extremely vulnerable, and that was a feeling she absolutely hated. She hated the fact that the four boys new exactly what she was capable of and how her mind works. She felt as though she were exposed to them. She felt too close to them. She felt like they pried into her soul, and saw her deepest and darkest parts. She felt too feminine.

"Why are you so tired?" asked Alice, as Demi clambered onto the bench next to her. All around the Great Hall was buzzing.

Demi sat there in silence, looking at the silver tray of toast in front of her. The silver was the exact colour of Sirius' eyes. She remembered how sad he looked, like his heart was being ripped out of his chest. She felt someone tapping her shoulder and looked up into the face of a worried Alice.

"Demi, you've been looking really ill for the last couple of weeks. Are you feeling alright?" she asked, pouring the girl a glass of water and handing it to her.

Demi nodded and took the cup gratefully. "I dunno, I feel really tired and sad, but I don't know why."

Alice nodded, "it happens to everyone. You've probably got a lot on your mind."

Demi nodded, "yeah, that's probably it," she murmured. At this point during the day, she'd most likely be with the guys, further down the table, planning a prank, or just messing around. Lately, after that encounter with the boys, especially Sirius, she felt as though they were genuinely worried about what she could do, not only to others but to herself. The boys had been trying to get her to cheer up, but they found that just pushed her further back into her shell, just as the book described.

Lily and Kiaria walked over and sat next to her. "You okay?" they asked.

There they go, prying me open as usual, Demi thought."Jesus, you guys. I'm fine. How many times do I have to say it? Honestly, you lot are getting so nosey" she snapped. She stood up and marched to the end of the hall, and swung the heavy gold and oak door with so much force, it hit the wall, flew off the hinge, and fell onto the floor.

Everyone went quiet.

Sirius' Point of View

The four of us shut up and Demi snapped at the other three girls. It makes sense, I thought, they were being very curious. I watched as she stood up, ran, and broke the door of the Great Hall. Jesus, she's strong, I thought. The entire hall was silent as Dumbledore pulled out his wand and repaired the frame.

James looked back at me, "she's been a little temperamental since the-the- thing" he said.

Remus and Peter nodded. "She's been extremely quiet which is unusual, normally she won't shut up" said Peter.

"I think it might have to do with the book, you know, what we read that night. I think she feels, you know, exposed," I said, trying to defend her actions.

"Yeah, but just because your best friends know all that stuff about you doesn't mean you should fly off the handle every time someone says 'hello,' does it?" asked James in a huff. He hated it when Demi was upset. He was extremely protective of her.

"Try to empathize a little James, she's your s-s-sister" I stumbled over the last word, as it reminded me why I could be with her. "Imagine everyone you care about, all your friends knowing your ins and outs, exactly what ticks you off, knowing that you are prone to becoming an alcoholic, depressed, or even suicidal? It's tough."

Remus and Peter slowly nodded. James mumbled, "yeah but I'd feel better knowing you lot could help me through it."

"Which is the exact opposite of what Demi would want. She likes dealing with her problems alone. Believe me, I've endured a good ass whooping from her when I tried to help her with Lockhart," I reminded them.

"Yeah, well what you were trying to do wasn't exactly helpful to their relationship, was it?" Remus mentioned pointedly.

"Whatever" I said, as I stood up. I walked past the girls, when I felt a tug on my sleeve. I looked down and saw Alice.

"I'd leave her alone, she doesn't seem to want company," she said.

"Well, I think she does" I replied politely. Alice was slightly emotional. Anytime someone was angry at her, she'd have to apologize. She hated it when people yelled at her, and having Demi yell at her had clearly shaken her up.

"You don't know her that well-" began Evans, tossing her fiery hair over her shoulder.

I bent down and rested both hands on the table, locking eyes with Evans. "I know you're her best female friend and everything, but has it ever occurred to you that she might actually be friends with me for a reason? Has it ever occurred to you that I might know more about her than you do? Oh, and if there's anyone here that isn't scared of an angry Dumbledore, it's the only person whose faced one daily." I straightened up and walked out of the Hall.

I got into the foyer, and saw Nearly Headless Nick floating in the distance. "Hey Sir Nick-NICK" I yelled.

The ghost slowly revolved and floated back to where I was standing, "yes Mr. Black?"

"Have you seen Demi?" I asked, hoping that he had.

My prayers were answered as he nodded his head. "Yes, she ran in the direction of the Astronomy tower." I nodded and said thanks, running up the flight of stone steps on my right. No surprise that she'd gone there. That's where she normally disappeared to whenever she was upset. I ran through the corridors, most of which were empty. The vast majority of students were having breakfast. I ran up the spiral staircase and onto the topmost level of the tower. The giant armillary sphere was swaying gently and over the railing the sun has risen. The lake, grounds, and even where I stood at the back of the room was suddenly bathed in golden light. I managed to drag myself from focusing on the view, to the small figure who was standing off to the side of the balcony. I stood behind Demi for a moment, just admiring the view. The sunshine made her look like a shadow, the light bending around the curves of her waist, and mixing in with the dark blue of her hair, giving her head a slightly blue outline. I came up behind her and wrapped my arms around her waist, resting my chin on her shoulder. "It's beautiful isn't it?" I whispered into her ear. I felt her head nod.

She turned around and faced me, so her back was pressed against the railing and her face was buried in my chest. I wrapped my arms around her, like I had done a month ago in the Room of Requirement. "I'm sorry I've been acting so . . ." she sniffled. She looked up at me, her brown eyes swimming with tears. I hadn't realized but this was the first time I'd ever seen her cry. She'd come close to it before, always managing to put up a strong front for the others, but to see her breaking down made me feel so helpless.

"Don't worry about it. It's not your fault. I mean, we shouldn't have gone through all those traits and everything. It was too personal" I said, trying to console her.

She sighed heavily, "I have a problem. A fatal flaw if you will. I've never told anyone what I'm about to tell you. Not even Dumbledore" she said. I nodded and guided her to the flagged steps, where we sat down. She put her head on my shoulder, wiped her eyes and began. "You know what Sirens are right? Like in the Greek myths? If one hears them sing, they become wiser? What people don't know is that they also become distressed. You go insane," she stopped. I nodded and put my arm around her.

"Go on."

She took a deep breath and continued, "when Voldemort (Sirius shuddered) tortured me for information on Dumbledore, I didn't give in. I put up with it all. He realized it wasn't working. He tried to get multiple people to curse me at the same time. I didn't break. He threw me in the dungeon and I was alone for about three days. When he came back, he ordered the Death Eaters to bring me to the room where he would torture me. I thought I knew what was coming. They chucked me in there, and shut the door. I realized I was alone. I was about to ask what was happening and I heard it. The Siren. It was singing. At first it was okay, but then it began to sing about my life, my future. It mentioned my fatal flaw."

"Which is?" I asked, trying not to picture the state of health Demi was in.

"Personal Loyalty. I would risk anything to save a friend. The problem was, the Siren told me my future. I'm destined to die saving a friend."

I hugged her tighter, "maybe it was a lie. You know, sometimes Sirens are wrong love."

"Yeah, rarely. Those odds are slim, Sirius. I wasn't about to risk it. Eventually Voldemort came and got rid of it. He sent me back to the dungeon. The problem is, he knows my fatal flaw. He can use it. That's why I don't like being so close to people. That's why I limit how much information I share with people. I'm afraid that one day, he might capture one of you-" she hiccupped and fell silent, tears rushing down her face.

Sirius moved so he could look her in the eyes. He wiped the tears off her cheeks with his sleeve hem. "So, you don't want to be close with anyone because you don't want to die," I stated.

"No, no. I don't care about dying. It's going to happen anyway, doesn't matter when. It's the danger I'd be putting the people I love in. I couldn't live with myself knowing I'd be the reason someone died."

"Love, you are the bravest person I know. But sometimes, you can be really thick," I said, hugging her. She smiled. "When are you going to get it into your head; we're in this together. No matter what. If I died because You-Know-Who caught me, I wouldn't blame you."

"But if he did, I wouldn't be able to live with myself. That's why the depression, alcoholism, suicide stuff scares me. Knowing that I could become like that. That would make it worse. Knowing you'd be fine with it, but no matter what I would always feel as though it were my fault. I'd end up going mad, I'd probably kill my-."

I kissed her. I didn't know why. I didn't know how. I just needed to stop her from saying it. I wrapped my arms around her and lifted her up. She wrapped her arms around my neck, and I could feel her hands running through my hair. She wasn't kissing me back, but she wasn't pulling away either. It felt like bliss. I felt alive. I felt so extremely happy, like nothing could get in the way of this moment. Suddenly a single thought ran through my head: Your best mate's sister? That's low. An image of an angry James popped into my head, screaming about betrayal, trust, and rules. I pulled away quickly, but my hands were still around her waist. She looked up at me startled. "We can't," I said.

"James," she replied.

I nodded my head. "We should go back downstairs, class is probably about to start."

She nodded, and looked at me, "this kiss. It never happened."

I nodded again. "Friends," I murmured.

"Friends" she replied. We smiled at each other, linked arms, and ran to join our friends downstairs.

IT FINALLY HAPPENED.

Will they get together?

Will they?

WILL THEY?

Jeez, I got a little caught up there, didn't I? Well, anyhow, I guess we'll have to wait for the next chapter to see what happens, huh. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about the anti-werewolf teacher and the whole James vs Snape thing. The next chapter is dedicated to that. Oh, and tell me what you guys thought about Demi's animagus. WizardDragon helped me with that bit. I wasn't sure what to make it. What about that kiss, huh?

Leave it in the reviews.